Our approach to supporting children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND)

At Hartpury we welcome children from all backgrounds and abilities. We strive to meet the needs of each individual in order to provide a positive and nurturing educational experience. Our school has a wide range of resources and a dedicated team of staff to ensure all children achieve their full potential.

How does school know/identify that children have special educational needs (SEN)?

If a child has identified needs when they join Hartpury, staff will work closely with parents.

In addition school will liaise with pre-school or previous educational settings to ensure that the child’s needs are met.

Childrens’ progress is assessed and tracked by the teaching staff and monitored by the Head Teacher. Class teachers will raise concerns they may have about a child and discuss with the SENCo and parents. If necessary, appropriate assessments will be carried out and support put in place.

What are the first steps our school will take if special educational needs are identified?

Class teachers will raise concerns they may have about a child and discuss with the SENCo and parents. If necessary, appropriate assessments will be carried out and support put in place.If appropriate we will involve external agencies to work with the child or offer advice to the staff.

What should parents/carers do if they think their child has SEN? How can they raise their concerns?

School has an open door policy and encourages the parents to raise any issues immediately. Please speak with your child’s teacher and we can plan the next course of action.

How will our school include parents and students in planning support?

We want parents and the child to be fully involved in the planning of support. We will always work with the children and they will discuss and review their targets/outcomes regularly. Pupil voice about issues that involve them is an important approach to meeting a child’s needs. We will meet with parents on a regular basis.

How will our school teach and support children with SEN?

All children and young people with SEND are valued, respected and equal members of the school. As such provision for pupils with SEND is a matter for the school as a whole. All teachers are teachers of pupils with SEND. The Governing Body, Headteacher, SENCo. and all other members of staff have important responsibilities to ensure access to the Curriculum. All pupils have the entitlement to a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum. All pupils with SEND are taught for all/most of the week with their peers in mainstream classes by class/subject teachers and study the curriculum at the appropriate level for their ability. Pupils may sometimes be taught by a TA/teacher on an individual or small group basis.

With advice from and the support of the SENCo, teachers match the learning to the needs and abilities of their pupils. They use a range of strategies to develop the pupils’ knowledge, understanding and skills. Where appropriate, materials are modified or support is provided to enable pupils with SEND to access the learning or the assessment processes. The school will endeavour to ensure that staff are trained to meet the needs of the individuals where appropriate.

Access to the Wider Curriculum

In addition to the statutory curriculum the school provides a wide range of additional activities. All pupils with SEND are actively encouraged and supported to join in and benefit from these activities. The participation of pupils with SEND in these activities is monitored carefully.

How will the progress be monitored?

The class teacher will plan and oversee appropriate provision for your child and this will be monitored by our SENCo. The plan will be regularly reviewed to meet the ever changing needs of each individual. The provision plan will be shared with parents regularly. Support may be planned within the classroom and provided by the class teacher or teaching assistant. Sometimes small groups or individual interventions will be put in place; these groups will usually be led by a teaching assistant. At Hartpury these Teaching Assistants are usually also qualified teachers. The SENCo will ensure that the information about a child’s SEN is shared and understood by teachers and all relevant staff who come into contact with that child.

The Headteacher carries out regular tracking of all pupils’ progress. Formal and informal assessment is ongoing in the classroom. Any interventions are carefully monitored to ensure that SEN provision is formally reviewed six times a year, by the SENCo where provision and progress is monitored. Parents’ evenings are held twice a year as well as informal class open afternoons. For children with a EHCP formal reviews are held annually with the child, parents, school and all appropriate agencies are invited to attend.

Who oversees the SEND provision at Hartpury School and what is the role of the SEN Governors?

The Headteacher is responsible for the overall management of the school’s SEND provision. The SENCo and Head work in close consultation with the SEND Governor in the development and monitoring of the SEND policy. The governors work in cooperation with the SENCo and Head to determine and implement the policy, establish the approach to the school’s provision for children with SEND and to report to parents. The SEND governor monitors the school’s work on behalf of the children with SEND.

Staff Expertise

At Hartpury we strive to ensure that staff training reflects the needs of the children in our care and plan opportunities to meet these needs regularly.

Qualified SENCo

75% of Teaching Assistants hold QTS

What support/intervention programmes does Hartpury School run for children with SEND?

Activities used to support children with autism:

Visual timetable

Social stories

Task cards to break down instructions into clear sequenced steps to develop independence.

Small social group work

We have the support from the Advisory Teaching Services, Communication and Interaction Team. They work with children, parents and staff to offer individual advice.

Provision for children with Moderate Learning Difficulties

Classroom TA support is provided.

Additional support includes:

Toe by Toe/Apples & Pears (Spelling intervention)

Materials to support literacy and numeracy. These are dependent on individual needs.

Literacy and Numeracy booster groups.

One to One support for specific difficulties.

Motor skills support – e.g. Speed Write or letter formation support.

Numicon resources to support numeracy.

Dancing Bears – Phonics

Rapid Reading – Reading Catch Up programme.

Fizzy – Gross Motor Skills.

Provision for children with Speech, Language and Communication Needs:

We would refer a child’s speech therapist and use materials they provide to support individuals. We have a TA trained in the provision of Speech and Language.

We work closely with all staff and parents to ensure a consistent approach to any behavioural issues. We put in place behavioural support methods dependant on the child’s needs. We are also able to call in support from the local authority behavioural support team or other behavioural specialists/teachers from special schools. We have resources in school to support children with emotional difficulties and again can involve appropriate external agencies. The school has access to a behavioural specialist linked to our local cluster.

At Hartpury we have a well established Yr6 & Reception buddy system that ensures young children have a positive role model. Furthermore, clear transition arrangements between all classes, involving regular class swaps in the summer term, ensure children are well supported by peers.

Further support includes the use of social skills groups and art therapy as and when appropriate.

Which other services do we use to provide for and support our pupils/students?

We ask for the expert advice from other specific health services, local authority, social care, other specialist organisations and specialist teachers. This will be carefully discussed and explained with the parents/carers beforehand so that they fully understand the nature of the support and feel that it is appropriate for their child.

How do we arrange and support a transfer to another school/educational establishment?

We recognise that transitions can be difficult for a child with SEND and take steps to ensure that any transition is as smooth as possible. If your child is moving to another school we will contact the school SENCo and ensure he/she knows about any special arrangements or support that needs to be put in place for your child. We will make sure that all records about your child are passed on as soon as possible. When moving classes in school, information will be passed on to the new class teacher in advance and in most cases a planning meeting will take place with the new teacher. All MyPlans will be shared with the new teacher.

What special arrangements are made during formal assessments?

The class teacher ensures that barriers to assessment are reduced and that any formal assessment results are a true reflection of that child’s ability. In the case of KS2 SATs school can apply for various arrangements to be put in place to ensure that every child has a fair chance of accessing the tests.

Where can you find our SEN Policy?

There is a copy of our policy on the school website.

Who can you contact for more information?

Please get in touch with your child’s teacher as soon as you feel there is an issue. The SENCo/Headteacher will also be very happy to discuss any concerns and offer advice.

If a parent has a complaint about the provision for their child, linked to SEND, then the school complaints procedure is followed as outlined in the policy found on the school website.

Head teacher: Mr Simon Millington Email: head@hartpury.gloucs.sch.uk

SENCo: Mrs Alison Philcox Email: sendco@hartpury.gloucs.sch.uk

Local Offer for Children with Special Educational Needs

All Gloucestershire maintained schools have a similar approach to meeting the needs of pupils with Special Educational Needs and are supported by the Local Authority to ensure that all pupils, regardless of their specific needs, make the best possible progress in school. All schools are supported to be as inclusive as possible, with the needs of pupils with a Special Educational Need(s) and or disabilities being met in a mainstream setting wherever possible, where families want this to happen. The school’s SEND Policy can be accessed through the school website.

The purpose of the Local Offer is to ‘offer’ information to parents in a single place which helps them to understand what is available.